


Luz, Light of my Life

by PrincessToQueen



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Compliant, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Multi, Parent Emperor Belos (The Owl House), Post-Episode: s01e18 Agony of a Witch, Slow Burn, plot heavy, world building
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-14 03:34:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28913922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessToQueen/pseuds/PrincessToQueen
Summary: Luz Noceda is keeping secrets from her mother just as easily as her mother is keeping secrets from her.The Boiling Isles is changing, and not in the good type of way. Isle residents are going through a lot of things now and many of them are connected to the appearance of one single human that sells items with a demon and the most powerful witch of the Isles.
Relationships: Alador Blight/Lilith Clawthorne, Amity Blight/Luz Noceda, Boscha/Willow Park, Eda Clawthorne/Original Character(s), Edric Blight/Jerbo, Emira Blight/Viney
Comments: 29
Kudos: 64





	1. Chapter 1 - The Nurse

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, everyone...uh, this is the rewritten version of the original and the original is still here! It’s still...it’s uncompleted but, still here...and it’s a private work-
> 
> BUT EVERYONE, WHOEVER IS READING THIS FIRST TIME, ENJOY AND WHOEVER IS AN ORIGINAL READER, IVE FIXED SEVERAL PLOT HOLES AND MADE MAGICAL EDITS TO THE TEXT FOR A BETTER FIT!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)

Camilla Noceda was not a person to be messed with. Everyone who had known her in her teenage years knew this and even more so in her years of pregnancy. She is a mother, a nurse, and a somewhat author. She had a lot of experience for someone her age so please try to understand that when she feels something is wrong with the world, it usually means that something is.

She first feels it when she leaves Luz alone on the first day of summer. 

Camila sighed, ignoring the chill that shot up her spine and instead reached for a Manila folder that sat next to the rest of her workload without hesitation because a chill is just a chill... _right?_

She continued to work without a care and decided that she’ll check up on Luz after.

The reply is happy, peppy and...assuring.

When she does get home, exhaustion weighing on her body as she pulls out her phone and relaxes in an armchair to text her daughter, the chill finally goes away.

Not much but still lessens it’s hold on her spine.

 _‘I think I’m going to like it here’_

Camilla smiles, the chill receding more at the reply...but still there. 

Several days pass, more passive replies to her texts which are just mostly emojis at the time before she gets a letter from the camp. Her expectations of the letter were a little degrading considering how her daughter is at school but it’s a simple check-up letter from Luz. Reassuring her mother and several details of the camp, small tidbits of this and that...though, it’s when Luz signs off in the letter and her name is spelt wrong. It’s crossed out with the correct spelling written at the side.

She frowns and the chill is back thrice on her spine. 

Camilla reaches for her phone but faulted when a hum of a call echoed through her house, when she picks it up and answers, she gets a notice that she’s working more hours within the next few weeks and Camilla internally groans but agreesto her bosses words. 

She tosses the phone back onto the table and gazes back to the letter, a constant frown etching a permanent carving on her face.

Luz always used to speed write her name when she was in school sometimes... _maybe it’s a relapse of her energy?_

Camilla sighs, “ _Dios me ayuda con mi vida, esto se está haciendo demasiado para mí…_ ”

She picks her phone back up and levels her way into her room for a needed rest and ignores the chill as it freezes up her back.

_Todo saldrá bien._

“ _Everything is fine._ ” Camilla mutters to absolutely no one in her empty house.

She goes to work the next day, the day after, the day after that day and before long it’s mail time and she’s reading another letter while the chill is constantly appearing each time she’s drawls her eyes over the poor penmanship of the letter before settling it on her daughters name that followed a sincerely.

It’s a pattern by the third week, a constant pattern of work at home and checking the mail by the fourth day of the process. A constant text to her daughter asking her how she is each day, an emoji following the reply...the same meaning behind each. The chill is starting to become comforting when she sees the emojis and reads the letters…

_Ping!_

She groaned, head in her pillow and tired of a day of back to back appointments but she does reach over for her phone and smiled as she sees it’s from Luz. 

Camilla has to stop and blink as she reads the paragraph, it’s surprising to say the least.

It’s about how her day had been confusing and extremely convoluted but at the end, was needed. Camilla sends back her own reassurance and even a ‘can't wait’ text about her letters before she lays to rest for the next day.

Though it's been a week since the text and-

“Ah!”

Camilla stops what she’s doing to just crumble, the chill is suddenly a burst of frozen blood vessels and her entire body sends itself into shock and it hurts and she’s scared and she thinks of Luz-

Camilla gasps, _Luz_.

She falls silent, trying so hard not to scream at the chill and waits, waits and gasps until finally…

She gets up and staggers to her phone and clicks on the camp's contact. Camilla fell in her armchair and placed the phone next to her ear, the ringing echoing more louder than any sound in the house.

“-Hello?”

“Can I-“ Camilla stutters, “-t-talk to my daughter?”

“Oh, sure thing. Name?”

“Luz. Luz Noceda.” She practically gasps out in a panicked voice.

The voice on the other end is talking to another person, she barely registers the conversation but given the still present chill in her spine, she doesn’t think the more harsher the whispers were becoming were a good thing.

“Ok…Uhum…" The whispering in the background becomes more hesitant and panicked, “Can you- Um, Can we call you back in a moment, ma’am?”

Camillas' breath hitches a bit, “S-Sure.”

The phone call ends. 

The feeling of fear, dread, and just- _wrong_ takes over her entire body. She grabs her purse, keys, and phone then heads straight into her car before launching the small vehicle in drive and speeding out towards the address of the camp. 

She ignores stop signs, listening to the chill in her body with each twist and turn on the road before she starts to mutter out a prayer, a prayer to a God that she has taken into acknowledging throughout her life as a god that does not really care for her, but she’s desperate and scared and not really willing to fight with philosophy- so she prays.

“ _Dios, que mis súplicas resuenen en tu reino, porque mi hija puede estar en peligro. Busco tu ayuda, busco tu ayuda, busco tu misericordia-_ “

-

“I can be calm. I can be calm. I can be calm...Oh, who am I kidding- _mataré a todos en ese campamento..._ and maybe I should’ve gotten a tour…or brought Luz myself.” She sighs and watches as the place she had seen on the brochure comes more into view.

The camp doesn’t really look like a camp, that’s the first thing Camilla frowns about and really starts to slow in her driving. It looks like a motel with a playground. A really cheap motel but there’s kids and a few preteens running around she knows she’s in the right place. 

She parks fast, it’s crooked but it’s not like she’ll be staying for long...she ignores the looks and marches into a building that she thinks is the administration.

She doesn’t hold back with slamming her fist on the door and it cracks open after a few seconds of whispering that was heard, “M-Mrs. Noceda?”

“Ms. Noceda.” Camilla quickly corrects, “Where’s my daughter?!”

Panic sets in their eyes before they begin to scream, “WHAT DAUGHTER!? WHOSE DAUGHTER- SHIT, UH- BYE!”

The door almost slams in her face but Camilla, with all her power of dealing with the multitude of hell, a hyper child and persistent patients at her office has it slammed back open. The person who had tried to close the door was tossed back as the door swung around to slam at the wall.

The person- a boy who looked roughly eighteen, began to panic and almost ran but someone stepped in between her and the boy. 

An older girl with teal hair, looking scared, held her hands up towards Camilla as she stepped around and in front of the boy to block him. “O-Okay! Okay, can we calm down a bit? Ms. Noceda, I’m the person you called...about twenty minutes ago and-“

As much as they tried to calm Camilla, she wasn’t having it. “Where 's my daughter?! _Lo juro por todos los dioses de arriba-_ You tell me where-!”

“M-Ms. Sey?”

All three of them looked to the left of Camilla as a small number of children crowded around an open back door, several teenagers and even other adults were present but the scarcity of her own daughter had her falter.

The girl, who was most likely ‘Ms. Sey’ began to take deep breaths, waving away the boy that was behind her towards the other kids, “Just…a code purple, everyone. Nothing too bad.” 

Camilla looked between the kids that began being taken away from the scene she caused and the girl who stood in front of her. Her teal hair was kept in a high bun, she wore a turtleneck sweater with jean shorts and brown combat boots. Her eyes were green and she had a deadly shade of red lipstick.

For some reason, she seemed familiar to Camilla but now wasn’t the time, the chill on her back was finally receding enough for her to feel the warm air of the summer day.

Taking a short break to breathin the new heat, she sighed softly, “Code purple?”

‘Ms. Sey’ chortled out a cackle before nodding, “Parent who loves their child but is a little...too much.”

Camilla nodded along before hanging her head down, rubbing at her tearing up eyes. “..Oh, _por el amor de Dios...esto es un desastre…_ What is with this place?”

The girl hummed before she waved at Camilla to follow her, “Let's do introductions first, my name is Jessamine Sey Lou. I’m the head administrator for this camp. I’m taking a shot in the dark with saying you're her mother?”

“Yes…”

Jessamine nodded, “Well, your daughter...Luz, right? While she may have been written up for our camp, she isn’t here and hasn’t been for the entirety.”

They were let into an office and Jessamine had them both seated, but the Latina wasn’t in the happy mood as Camillas gut twisted, now she knew why that chill was on her spine ever since she left Luz… _Wait a minute-_

Her head shot up to look at Jessamine, “Then who's been writing me letters?!”

“His name is Jared, not the smartest tool in the shed but considering that you’ve been taking them without question means he did a really good job or you just...didn’t know your daughter as well as you thought.”

Camillas breath hitched as she made a small move towards Jessamine, “ _¡¿En qué diablos estás pensando?!_ ”

The girl in front of her sighed, it was an annoying type of sigh that Camilla wasn’t too fond of hearing at the moment…

“Exactly as I said. Besides, you're not the first parent that this has happened to ya’know?”

“What? Why would-“

“Please don’t take offense when I say this-“ Jessamine groaned, “-but did you really think your daughter would have been happy at a camp meant for suppressing who you are?”

No reply. Luz wouldn’t have, there was no doubt about that...she tried to protest the entire thing for a week before the bus that was supposed to get her came. Up until the last second.

Another sigh from Jessamine and Camilla narrowed her eyes as she tilted her head back up, “I started this camp ten years ago-“ They held up a finger, “I’m thirty seven, mind you. But for the most part, I started this camp as a place for kids to be happy with what they were doing or were interested in without the the firing of decriminatiom of their parents or guardians. And I know this might seem concerning but...kids running away was common.”

Camilla let out a gasp and Jessamine stilled to rethink her words, “...what I meant was not from the camp but after or before coming here. We teach the kids who actually come here to find a way towards their dream while dealing with real world problems. We encourage what they like and try our best to avoid crumbling their dreams. The last bit is something we avoid putting on the pamphlets.”

Camillas nodded in solemn silence. Those pamphlets were a little bit constricting but...

“So, to avoid the confrontation of a parent on the last day, we give the kids a warning and leave it up to them on whether or not they would like to leave before their parents get to them. Those who ‘runaway’ are simply directed to places in which they could hide or be at safety.” Jessamine stated but Camilla raised an eyebrow, she was losing her patience fast with this woman…and it seemed like she understood the glare she was receiving because she pulled out a folder.

“Your daughter didn’t come here and wasn’t even at the bus stop from what the quartermaster told me- we still have her picture and registration forms but not her.”

Camilla felt the shiver climb her spine at Jessamine's words and began to shake, “I left her at the bus stop though... _I was_ _there with her but_ -“

“Was there another place that your daughter might have gone to? A friend?” Jessamine recommended with a shake of her head but faltered after a glance at the file, “O-Or something? An online friend-“

Camilla shook her head, “She doesn’t have anyone here in this town, and all her online friends are probably with her on her phone. Luz did say that she does have a few ones earlier at what would’ve been here but-“

Jessamine leaned forward, “You’re in contact with your daughter?”

“Very briefly though.” She sighed absently and started to shift with the chill still rising on her spine, “When I text her she often texts back emojis but two weeks ago she told me about her day and-“

Jessamine shifted in her seat and went to pop out something from a drawer, “Ms. Noceda, if there’s anything I learned with running a camp meant for troubled kids is that there are four types of kids.” She sat back up and laid down a few papers that had several lists across them and Camilla knew it was Luz’s behavior reports from school. “Three of which are runaways and the other one is sticking with their parents. One of the three is your daughter, lying about where she is but loves you enough to tell you that she stays in contact. But there's one thing I have to ask you if I’m going to continue, if you mind?”

“Go ahead…” Camilla sighed, knowing what the questions might be.

“Why’d you sign your daughter up for this camp? I know you wrote down that she was...overactive in terms of her hobbies. Fireworks, a failure to notify of fake self-mutilation, and bringing pets to school are the most concerning though not non-negotiable.”

Camilla leaned forward to read the reports and sighed from each incident that transpired in the written days.

“We tried to, we tried so hard to teach Luz, to help her try to understand what she was doing wasn't right but none of it stuck with her. She did the same things over and over. Led a spider infestation in school, freaked out all her classmates with her act in their school play...and cheerleading tryouts- okay, maybe the cheerleader one wasn’t that drastic but her stunt with the fireworks and snakes?! That got her kicked out!” Camillas' voice cracked as panic and the irritation of the events boiled through her. 

Jessamine nodded with a wince, “Okay, I think I understand that last one better after hearing what it really was. Did you ever get her checked out with a psychiatrist?”

Camilla gave her a sharp glare, “ _No soy tan estúpido, chaval. Sé cuándo falta un niño._ ”

Jessamine pursed her lips, “What?”

“Yes, _diablo_ , I did.”

“And?”

“ _You have her medical records already, you don’t need me to understand that!_ ” Camilla hissed.

Jessamine winced and nodded, “O-Okay...I understand...would you, would you like help with trying to find your daughter?”

“ _¿Qué te parece?_ ”

Jessamine hummed, “...I’m gonna take that as a ‘yes’ and tell you something that might help. It’s a term that I learned that helped a bunch of parents find their kid. It’s known as ‘Genetic Instinct’, it’s something that you could see in a bunch of people and even animals. It’s when a person's genetics makes them go someplace, be somewhere that they haven’t gone to before, and feel so much more at home there than where they were before. So, Ms. Noceda, is there someplace that you in her age may have gone to by incident?”

Camilla shook her head, “Not that I…” She trails off as she thinks back, remembering her younger years, of the wooden door that was on that old house, the wooden looking owl that she saw every so often digging in her trash… _trash_. 

Luz must’ve gone to grab the book back after she left her.

“Ms. Noceda?”

Camilla blinks, the snapping fingers making her refocus on the girl in front of her, “Oh, _lo siento..._ I just...I think I know where my daughter went, _gracias por tu ayuda.”_

Jessamine nodded. “Anytime, but for now should I put your daughter as early leave or should I be expecting her?”

With a shake of her head, Camilla gets up from her chair, “No...She...” Camilla sighs, “I have made an error in my judgement with sending her here.”

Jessamine raised an eyebrow, “Would you like a refund? To go get your daughter back?”

Camilla shakes her head again, “You all can keep the money. Where my daughter went, I don’t need it back...but I do want my daughters folder of all the information I gave you.”

“Whatever you say, Ms. Noceda.” Jessamine hums, grabbing out a few more papers that were stacked around in a drawer before handing them all to Camilla. As soon as they were placed in her hands, the nurse took off from the office, the camp, and got into her small car.

Jessamine went to the huge window behind her to watch Camilla leave out the driveway, starting to hum before singing off into a small hymn, “ _All our hope is placed in Azura~ May she keep our land in peace, for she is the good witch Azura~_ ”

Jessamine smiled and two fangs glittered in the now fading light of the sky and soon the children she had ushered out of the office stilled in the back to watch the car continue to drive off down the street. Their eyes glowing bright as Jessamine's own before they started to pick back into the administration building, none speaking and none moving any different as the adults ushered them inside.

“ _Lest the evil rises, in the time of our light~_ ” Misha sunk her eyes down into the bottom shelf of her desk and started to sing off key as a crystal ball quivered into an acid green, “ **_And the day dims to reeking hell_ **…”

There was a cackle from the glowing orb and Jessamine fell silent as the building started to melt slowly and the glass crack. 

“Master, she’s on the Isles...I-“

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dios me ayuda con mi vida, esto se está haciendo demasiado para mí… = God help me with my life, this is being too much for me…  
> Todo saldrá bien. = Everything's gonna be okay.  
> Dios, que mis súplicas resuenen en tu reino, porque mi hija puede estar en peligro. Busco tu ayuda, busco tu ayuda, busco tu misericordia- = God, may my pleas resound in your kingdom, for my daughter may be in danger. I seek your help, I seek your help, I seek your mercy-  
> -mataré a todos en ese campamento… = -I'll kill everyone in that camp.  
> Lo juro por todos los dioses de arriba- = I swear to all the gods above-  
> por el amor de Dios...esto es un desastre… = For God's sake, this is a disaster.  
> ¡¿En qué diablos estás pensando?! = What do you mean by that?!  
> No soy tan estúpido, chaval. Sé cuándo falta un niño = I'm not that stupid, kid. I know when a child is a little slow.  
> diablo = brat  
> Qué te parece = What do you think?  
> lo siento = I’m sorry  
> gracias por tu ayuda = Thank you for your help  
> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)


	2. Chapter 2 - The Announcement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhh...welcome back, so...new chapter every other week. Critique and comments welcomed!
> 
> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)

**_“-Bel! Bel! Finally, you're awake!”_ **

**_Luz blinked her eyes, the brightness of the sun almost becoming blinding but she bore through it to look at the woman in front of her. The woman had turned to face away from Luz before she could see her face but she found herself focusing on the appearance of the woman from behind._ **

**_Green hair, white and gold clothes...yup, another one of these dreams-_ **

**_Her mouth opened and while she tried to move it to say what she wanted just like the other dreams, another voice spoke in her place. “Azura, we just rested from that...basilisk. What are you so excited for so early?”_ **

**_Luz felt her eyes bulge at the echo, this was the first time this had happened in her dreams. She was one of the people...she was ‘Bel’, though. Ugh._ **

**_“How cool would it be if I skydived from this height?”_ **

**_Before Luz could try and fight to look around, Azura moved over and ‘Bel’ started to stand up. They walked towards Azura while she held both her arms out and snapped her wrist down to present the edge of a cliff-_ **

**_The edge of a huge cliff._ **

**_Luz gulped, that was a long...way down._ **

**_“In all honesty Azura, I would not find it…’cool’ but if it would make you happy…”_ **

**_They laughed and Luz had to blink rapidly as the blinding light from the sun shone bright as Azura turned to face them. Despite how close she was, the glare from the sun shone first and covered most of her face but left her smile untouched._ **

**_“It would! It really would Bel-“_ **

“-Luz! Luz! Wake up!”

Luz blinked, her head shaking and frankly, it felt like a heavy case of vertigo. “I’m up! I’m up!”

She sat up and waited until her head stopped spinning to gaze up in a daze towards the four figures who sat and stood up next to her. Amity above her alongside King, Willow, and Gus. 

Sitting up, she began to rub her eyes, “Amity? Willow? Gus? What-“

King jumped on her lap and tugged on her shirt, “They announced Edas punishment!”

“What?!” Luz hissed and moved King to the side so she could get up to walk with her friends to the parlor where the crystal ball glowed.

“They're gonna petrify Eda in three days.” Willow frowned while she pointed towards the picture of Eda in her owl form, a small timer at the bottom that ticked down but the second while the hour remained still at seventy-two.

“ _Petrify_? What’s that?”

“Hm...it’s like…” King mumbled off and he reached over for Luz’s phone, typing in something quick before showing it to everyone.

“This.”

Luz squinted at the light of the screen, she looked at what at the search bar first before the pictures, ‘mythical legend of something turning into stone?’

_La leyenda mítica de algo que se convierte en-_

“Turning to stone?” Luz mumbled and she turned her eyes down to the pictures where layers of pictures of Medusa and stone statues were presented, she felt her breath hitch at the implication.

“She’s going to be turned to stone?!” 

She looked up at her friends, each of them bearing the grim face that Luz knew meant that King was right. Luz gulped and a flash of a memory of statues at the prison she had broken witches out of. How each had panels. How each had despair and pain and-

_Dios. Dios. Dios, no, que Dios te ayude-_

She wanted to cry…

“Is there…” Luz choked back a cry, “Is there anything we can do to reverse or-“

“It’s permanent,” Spoke Amity without a beat. “It’s to drain and seal magic away from...from other witches.”

_Other witches._

Luz staggered to sit on the floor to watch the crystal ball tick down to Eda’s... _punishment_.

_Castigo…Joder, ha resultado ser una tormenta de mierda._

“Luz? What do you want to do?”

Luz blinked out of her daze, her eyes wavering between a blurred mess and the faces of those around her. She felt their gazes and she dropped her eyes to look at the crystal ball, Edas cursed appearance snarling and growling. 

_Edas cursed appearance._

“I wanna cure Eda’s curse.” She breathed, the tears in her eyes finally dwindling back into her eyes as her words echoed.

“Cure Eda?” King gasped, “It’s practically irreversible-“ 

Gus made a noise of disagreement and Luz looked over at him, “No, it isn’t…well, shouldn’t be.” 

_Eh?_

Luz frowned, ignoring the small bout of hope that echoed through her body. She looked between her three friends and settled on Willow, “What do you mean?”

“Curses don’t last forever, they’re either really powerful but broken with a minor answer or last a long time with a difficult solution.” Willow started, she held up her scroll and a picture of the curse elixir hobo red, “I looked up the...potion that Eda was taking and now we know that it can be broken because the potion only works on the certain type of curse Eda has.”

“How? It’s a level five curse those things are hard to get rid of.” King groaned and Luz raised an eyebrow, curses have levels? _Man, she should pay more attention to the laws around here...Espera, ¿las leyes o la política le dijeron que estudiara más-_

“They’re difficult,” Amity snapped, causing Luz to snap her attention up to the witch and demon argument. “Not impossible.”

“Does it make much of a difference?” Groaned King, Luz silently nodded beside her. She really needed to know whether the hope was going to grow.

“ _Yes_ , because it means we have a _chance_.”

“You think it really can be cured?” Luz looked over at the tiny demon, the small thing looking off to the side while scratching his chin.

“I wish we could say we can, we would need the parchment.” Grumbled King, “If Lilith was the one who cursed her, then she might have it in her home but where does she…”

“Maybe in the castle?” Gus supplied and soon both him and King along with Willow tried to map out where Lilith might’ve stored the parchment but Luz was focused on the more quiet person of the group who was still and silent throughout the brain storming that was happening.

She watched Amity fidget, her mouth opening every so slightly but closing just as fast as her face paled more.

“Amity, what do you know?”

The green haired witch jolted at her name and soon three pairs of eyes matched the fourth pair with looking at the witch, all indicating that they were listening and Luz felt almost bad when Amity paled more than her own skin tone. 

“I-I…When-“ Amity’s stutter turned into more stuttering, “I-It’s...I-! Mhm...It’s just-“

“Amity, please.” Luz sighed, desperation echoing in her words.

“...my parents went to Hexside with Eda and Lilith. My dad and Lilith were in the same year while my mother was a year younger and Eda was the youngest. Back then, my mom...okay, she hasn’t changed from then and is a bit of-“

“Off track here, Amity.” Willow deadpanned.

“Okay, sorry...pretty much, my mom didn’t like Eda or Lilith much and when she heard that they had to duel...my mom told Lilith about the curse-“ Amity paused to hold up a finger to stop any words from them, “-but not its entirety.”

Luz casted her eyes to the side at the notion of her friend's words, “She lied. Your mom lied to Lilith.”

Amity was silent for a while, the ticking from the glowing orb continued until the seventh second and she spoke once more, “...yeah, she did.”

“How long did you know?”

“For a long time, I thought everyone...I thought Eda already knew. That’s why I thought the witch's duel was normal between them.” 

Luz caught Amity’s eye as she looked back towards the green haired girl, they shook a little and if she looked a bit closer, maybe the glare from the crystal ball would be seen from unshed tears that swelled in her eyes. 

“Luz, I swear I don’t know much than that-“

“I know, Amity, I know.”

“Kid...does Lilith or your mother have the parchment?”

“My mom.” Nodded Amity and the rest of the group let out a small sigh of relief. 

“Do you think you can get it?” Asked Gus, catching Luz’s attention once more before she looked back to Amity, the girl nodding in a small look of relief.

“Yeah, I can. My parents left for the Emperor's castle just a few hours ago, when my siblings get here, they’ll help me find it.”

“Good,” Willow sighed, “This is good…but I still think we need help.”

Luz groaned and dropped her head on the coffee table, it’s tired and dreariness matching King's entire attitude towards the situation as they both said the same thing in sync, “ _We know._ ”

“Agh...it’s so earl-“ Luz brought her head up to look at the timer then towards the clock above it then howled, “It’s six in the morning. How?!”

_¡Soy las seis de la puta mañana! Son las seis. En el. Joder. Buenos días. ¿Quién coño despierta tan pronto?_

She snapped her head towards Willow and Gus, the two turning away and scaring a shy finger towards Amity.

“I left as soon as the announcement came on,the twins are making up for me being gone.”

Luz nodded in appraise but something lurked behind her head and she frowned. They have a vague ability to get Eda in her right mind but-

_Oh, that nagging finally makes sense. Fuck._

“I have to get to Eda.” Sated Luz in a flat tone, her friends and Kinn looking at her with weary looks before groaning as they came to the understanding of why this was a new problem.

King casted off a vigilant glance towards her, “How?”

They were all silent as they thought until Amity sighed, “It seems like we’ll be breaking you in, Luz.”

“ _Eh-_ “

They didn’t get to finish the thought as Hooty slammed open and two greenettes poked their heads in with a shout of glee. 

“Wassup!” Exclaimed Edric, “Mom and Dad are finally away for the day-“

“Maybe two.” Emira coughed. 

“Maybe two,” Edric confirmed, “But they're still gone...so what’s the plan?”

Luz smiled, “Well…”

-

“That’s all you guys have at the moment?! We would’ve expected more!” 

Luz let out a tired laugh and silently agreed to the cries of the twins from a lack of a real plan. In all honesty, Luz was also kind of proud they had scrapped as much as they could considering the condition of the problem. They got bare medium...with a three day time limit. Two, counting Hooty’s condition at the moment. Poor bird was running on scraps of nature magic…

_Wait, we forgot to include Owlbert-_

“There would be more but that's the gist of it.” Gus groaned, making Luz jump from her thoughts back to the conversation.

“Hm...the curse thing is definitely something that could be done fast at the moment but it’ll take a bit of time.” Spoke Emira, her tone edging into a hesitant... _way_ that Luz felt chills from.

Willow seemed to take the change in tone in the same way that Luz had, promptly asking, “Why’s that?” 

“Mom doesn’t just have Eda’s curse-“ Edric scoffed in annoyance but he immediately faltered at the fake confidence he tried to mask the sentence in. 

“-she has millions of them. She collects them like a gardener in the Plant Coven.” Emira finished with a dreaded tone.

Luz paused to imagine the amount, gave a short glance towards Willow and grimaced. Emira must have seen her expression because she chuckled with Edric after the moment of silence.

“Yeah, it’s that bad.” Edric laughed then looked towards Amity, “Mittens, are you going to come with us to get it or stay here with the planning?”

“I’ll…” Amity paused as they all looked at her, “...I’ll come with you guys.”

“Oh good, more help with the mountains of scrolls but we’ll do it later.” Emira laughed and pulled out her scroll, pausing when she saw something that came up with a large scream that startled Luz. The screams started to erupt more and all of the witches in the room started to pull up the scrolls, each scowling in confusion.

Luz leaned over to the end of the coffee table to look at Gus’s scroll. “What is it?”

“It’s an announcement from Principal Bump. He’s cancelling school for a couple of days.”

“Oh,” Luz gasped but faltered, “But doesn’t Bump not...do the random...school holiday?”

“Yeah but I have a feeling it has to do with Eda.”

“-and us!” Edric piped up.

“And _maybe_ us, after all, we are breaking Eda out on a school night.” Emira smiled, “So, who has breakfast?”

Luz gaped and looked over towards her friends, each of them shrugging with confused expressions until King leapt up on the coffee table in glee, tired glee.

“Luz, make breakfast.” 

_Oh, gatito, perro, brujería, demonio híbrido..._

-

“So, other than Eda, what’s been happening to you?”

Luz blinked up at Willow, an egg filled spoon halfway towards her face, “Huh?”

“Luz, you have eyebags.” Amity supplied, leaning forward to poke at the Latinas cheeks. 

“Yeah, you’ve been sleeping all right?”

Luz blinked at Willow before rubbing at her eyes. Pulling them back when she felt that they were very dry and reached over to drink more water. “Slightly. Ever since I got back from the Emperor's castle, I’ve been having these weird dreams.”

Gus peeked up, “Weird like how?” 

“Eh…” Luz looked off to the side as she thought to try and explain them in the most understandable way she could. Which was kind of hard. _Very hard..._

“She keeps on muttering about her favourite character in those Azura books. ‘ _Azura don’t-_ ‘ this and ‘ _Of course Azura_ ’ that.”

Luz felt blush rise up to her face as the little demon peaked over his bowl next to her, not an ounce of regret painted on his face “ _King!_ ”

“What?” King groaned, “It’s true, besides, they might know who the ‘ _Bel_ ’ person might be or help you. You kicked me one time.”

Luz held a steady glare at the tiny demon, “And I said sorry for that.”

“There wasn’t any ‘Bel’ person in the series.” Amity spoke and Luz looked back towards the girl with a sigh before groaning.

“I know! But for some reason, whenever I have an Azura dream, she’s talking to some...I think it’s a guy, named ‘Bel’!”

“Maybe it’s a different name of another character?” Gus hummed.

Amity shook her head, “Even if it was, there wasn’t a person with a similar namesake or...what have you been doing in the dreams?”

“Eh...I don’t really know…” Luz sighed, “They always seem to be there for Azura, like a friend or something else but-“

“-there was no love interest or male companion in the series.” Amity cut in, her eyes narrowed in suspicion and caution.

“Yes!” Luz exclaimed with a tired cry, “There’s no one in the series like that and it’s driving me crazy because I don’t know why!”

“Uhm...what kind of characters were in the series?” Willow piped up from the side, confusion matching the rest of them.

“There was Azura, her mentor Amara and the animal companion was named Snatch. There was a villain named Hecate which later became an ally, with the final villain being the Gildersnakes master, Leviathan.” Amity explained, “They were the only people in the series that were extremely important, and I mean extremely.”

“O-Oh…” Willow stuttered, “Perhaps it’s just a trick dream?

“Maybe...but it gives me a weird sense of dèja vu every time.” Luz sighed, resolving to eat more of her food but she quickly felt the looks she got and sighed once more. “Dèja vu is a feeling of something repeating but you don’t know why or how.”

There was a starry look from Gus and the small boy went to write down in a book he had, “How do you spell that?”

“I’ll show you later,” Luz sighed and the group settled into a calm silence of simply eating crappy burned toast and eggs a little too discolored-

“So, what are you all going to do after this?” Edric asked, breaking the silence and causing Luz to lift her eyes up once more.

She spoke too soon about the calm silence.

Luz swallowed another bite of her food and turned to the cauldron that sat untouched, _if what they’re gonna do involves Potions, Oracle, Healing, and perhaps Beast Keeping magic..._

Luz smiled, “Me, Willow and Gus have to go get some people and some things in the markets.”

“Okay,” Emira nodded, “-and…?”

Luz paused and hummed, she really didn’t think that far...she took a glance at Amity and shrugged, “...mmh, we’ll decide from there after we get everyone.” 

“You know who you're getting?” Edric asked. 

“Ah...Barkus, Viney, Jerbo-“ Luz listed, counting off the names on her fingers, “-and...that should be it.”

Emira leaned forward, “Viney-“

“-and Jerbo?” Edric finished.

“Yeah...and Barkus...” Luz said, a question ringing off the last syllable as the twins launched forward in their seats with sparkling eyes. “Why?”

“Y-You know them? Like, _actually_ know them?” Emira gasped, her body pressing leaping higher on the counter, food forgotten to the side- and claimed by King if Luz saw right from the corner of her eye.

Luz gave a slow nod and started to inch back as the twins came more close-

_Mierda. Mierda. Mierda. Dejé mis glifos en el salón._

-but were grabbed by the collars of their shirts by purple, gooey hands. They were tossed back into their own stools and there was a finger snap from Amity, making Luz jump her gaze towards her friend and mouth a ‘thank you.’

“Emira, Edric. They were all on the detention track.” Amity groaned, “Of course she would know them!”

“-and where they live?” 

“...no…” Luz drawled, her eyes darting between Edric, Emira, and Amity. More on Amity because at the moment the only person who could round the two was their sister. Luz casted off a look towards Willow and Gus, the Plant Coven witch giving out a sigh and nodding at the human.

_Te prometo que te pagaré por este Willow._

“-but Willow has Jerbos scroll number-“

Edric snapped his head towards the indigo haired witch with speed that made everyone around him cringe as a snap recounted from his neck, “I’ll give you twenty-five snails for it.”

“Titan-damnit Edric.“ Amity hissed. “Okay, I think that’s enough harralding for my friends. Let’s go.”

“B-But…”

“ _Now_.” Amity growled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> La leyenda mítica de algo que se convierte en- = The mythical legend of something that becomes-  
> Dios. Dios. Dios, no, que Dios te ayude- = Oh, God. Oh, God. God, no, God help you-  
> Castigo…Joder, ha resultado ser una tormenta de mierda. - Punishment... Fuck, it turned out to be a shit storm.  
> Espera, ¿las leyes o la política le dijeron que estudiara más- = Wait, did the laws or politics O was told to study more-  
> ¡Soy las seis de la puta mañana! Son las seis. En el. Joder. Buenos días. ¿Quién coño despierta tan pronto? = It’s six o'clock in the fucking morning! It's 6:00. In the. Fucking. Morning. Who the fuck wakes up so soon?  
> Oh, gatito, perro, brujería, demonio híbrido… = Oh, kitten, dog, witchcraft, hybrid demon.  
> Mierda. Mierda. Mierda. Dejé mis glifos en el salón. = Shit. Shit. Shit. I left my glyphs in the living room.  
> Te prometo que te pagaré por este Willow. = I promise I'll pay you for this Willow.
> 
> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)


	3. Chapter 3 - The Witch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)

“Come back fast!”

“We’ll do our best!” Amity waved, her siblings hefted her up onto her brothers back so he could carry her instead of limping to their home.

Edric rang, “Our very best!”

“We’ll be back before you guys!” Emira sang, waving with Edric as the two walked, “Hopefully…”

Amity blinked at the whispered reply her of her sister, she was silent for a few seconds as Edric got a better grip on her legs before the trio started their journey back towards their home through the forest.

“I didn’t know you two were gay.” Amity stated, taking in the shock and hesitation that the twins displayed. 

“E-Edrics gay. I’m bi.” Replied Emira, waving her hand between both her and her mirror sibling but there was a...vigilant air around them.

Amity was quiet, she looked off to the side to try and think of a reply. There really wasn't much she could say about her siblings sexuality...well, there was one…but-

There was a stutter from Edric and Amity got shocked out of her thoughts as her brother tried evened out his balance and came to a slow pace- slower than what they were going. She looked to the side at Emira, the greenettes face was pale and her eyes seemed to be racing around everywhere except at her little sister. 

Amity scrunched up her face, _why were they acting like this? She’s gay-_

_Oh. Now she gets it._

She sighed, she was taking too long. They were panicking and she forgot to tell them.

“I’m gay, too.” Amity states, dropping her head back upon her brothers. “I forgot that you didn’t know.”

Emira gasped, “Y-You too?” 

“Yeah.” Amity murmured against her brother's hair, it was extremely soft and she wondered what he used.

“W-Well...I guess this didn’t go so bad.”

Amity hummed in agreement and fell silent once more, there really wasn’t anything to talk about between her and her siblings...it almost seemed sad to be honest.

They went on through the forest, slowly hearing the many sounds of the quint forest as they crunched through summer-season leaves that crumbled to the ground.

A few minutes into their walk where they could spot the town, Edric started to talk but Anity didn’t listen to his rambles. Her head was still planted on his head, she watched the leaves slowly change colors around them. Summer-season was her favourite season because of the leaves, they colored dirty red and she knew when fire-season happened soon, they would be dark ink like melting tar. Fire-season wasn’t her favorite because of that-

“-it kind of makes the diary thing a little less-“

Amity blinked back into attention and jerked a fist full of Edrics hair up, cutting off her brother's words and replacing them with a yelp.

“Ow!”

“I’m still not forgiving you two for that.” Amity growled. 

Emira chuckled, “Yeah, yeah, we know.”

Amity raised an eyebrow at her sister's words, while they weren’t condescending, they weren’t in a happy-teasing way either unlike other times where she had said the same thing. Amity bit her lip and stared at her sister, where the dual glimmer of mischief would have glowed in her eyes, a dull darkness took its place.

Amity didn’t like it, nor the nostalgia that went with her observation...but it wasn’t her biggest problem at the moment.

She clicked her tongue and looked away, _she wasn’t going to fight for an answer._

The silence that took up the first part of their trip returned until the brightening silhouette of their home started to come into their sights. The rising runs of the Isle colored the green roof of the mansion, turning it into a hue of orange that clashed with the white bricks.

“Home sweet home…” Murmured Emira in distaste, Amity paid no heed to the sarcasm that grafted on her words.

Edric carried her inside Blight Mansion before he places her down and Emira handed her the crutch back, Amity gave them a weary smile. _Now, all they-_

“Young Masters,” Echoed out three maids and the three of them froze. “Your parents have granted you all-“

_Shit…forgot about the maids…_

Amity frowned, looking at the uniforms of the three. Their parents never really hired many people to aid in the house work due to Fathers ease in abomination servants but the mother always preferred having a few hands that she had her own control over and the maids she hired were them. 

_What were their names, again?_ She remembers that the blue one was named something with an ‘S’ and the yellow one having rhymed with ‘Miley.’

“-maintain the mansion, and know that they will be present in a few days time. Your mother has requested you each to-“

Amity blinked back into reality and casted a quick glance to Emira, the older twin looking back at her with a frantic look in hopes of what to do. 

Giving Emira a glare, Amity jerked her head towards the maids before jerking it back to the door. 

_Get them out._

Her sister seemed to understand and she quickly raised her hand to stop the three maids. The three witches stopping their speaking to silently listen to the older.

“All of you-” She trailed off, looking between Edric and Amity. “Uhm….”

She looked frantically between the maids and her siblings, Amity shrugged and looked to the maids as well. They didn’t look mad and the interruption but rather confused, but they did wait for Emiras stuttering orders-

“Got a day off!” Edric yelped, jolted Amity and Emira to look at their brother. 

The maids...didn’t seem to like the reply Edric had.

The maid in the middle clicked their tongue in a chiding manner, “Why, master Edric? It’s-“

“While I understand-“

“-it should be known that your-“

Amity bit her lips, they were overlapping and she looked at her siblings. They were hesitant and Edric opened his mouth every few paces in the conjoined conversation but falters every time the small time space he could’ve talked in was taken away by another maid. 

_This was getting bad…_

Amity shot her eyes around the house for a better excuse and paused at her fathers portrait...then at an abomination trophy. 

“We need the house empty for a particular project, abomination studies is having me try to...” 

_Ah fuck, she forgot about this part._

Amity looked at the maids and her siblings, _they didn’t need to lie this bad before! Why the fuck is it so hard now?! Fuck, fuck, fuck-_

“Try to do chores!” Everyone looked at Emira, the greenettes shaking body taking on a confident smile while sweat trailed down her face. “Everything in the house! Amity has to prove her abomination can be able to have bare minimum sentience with doing tasks without her manually controlling each movement.”

The three blinked at the owlishly and seemed to take the answer better than the last, all echoing an hum of acknowledgement.

“Ah, we understand-“

“Of course, it is important for the young masters to be able to do their work to the best of their abilities-“

“Well, we will leave you all for this time but tomorrow we will be back to tend to the house once more.” Said the middle maid, bowing down slightly.

“O-Of course…” Amity said, “We’ll try not to make such a mess...goodbye.”

They wait for the maids as they raise up their bodies and leave into the kitchen from which they came, they wait until they hear the crack of the door open, they wait for the slam of the door, then they climb up the stairs to the third floor. They go past bedrooms and closets, the twins own room and even go through the hallway to pass Amity’s room just to turn a corner to another hallway.

A hallway that they loathe and avoid.

Amity was let down at the entrance way of the hall but she didn’t start to walk. She gulped, her eyes casting off of the walls that held the portraits of her family members both young and old. Amity felt that if she moved once, the eyes would follow her the rest of the way.

She always hated this hallway.

Edric shifted next to her, “Mittens?”

“Hm?” Amity hummed in a daze, her eyes still staring at the portrait's eyes. 

“Are we going to go?”

“Y-Yeah….” Amity whispered, “Just...give me a second.”

“Okay….” Edric and Emira drawled together.

_Titan_ , she really hates this hallway... _she doesn’t want to go in but…._

_**“Thank you, Amity!”** _

Amity lets a sigh escape her lips followed by a groan, “Let’s go.”

She started to walk forward with her crutch as her siblings were a few feet in front. When she finally reached the door in three more sweeps than the amount her siblings used, they all froze in front of the door and Emira’s hand hovered over the handle.

Emira heaved out a sigh and twisted the handle, tugging it back once, twice, then a final time. They all stepped back as it creaked open and the door swung back, Emira smiled and the two and gave a small bow towards her siblings, the two of them lurched inside, the smaller of the three gasping out as she took a look around.

“What the fuck?!”

In all honesty, reasonable choice of words...when the room, which is honest about maybe...four or two feet bigger than Amity’s own has curses stacked to the roof in each corner along with a desk at the back of the room, where there was more curses stacked upon its surface. Each of the walls held shelves that had scrolls bursting off of the ledges and balanced near the edge. 

“Titan sake, Mom has this much curses up here?!” Amity screeched as she gawked, she toed at several curses that were dropped along the floor. She knows that she hasn’t been here for awhile but... _how?!_ She doesn’t even see her mother carry in the curses! So how does she have so much?!

Edric and Emira giggled as they passed by her to go inside, “Yup-“

“-So let’s get digging, Mittens.”

Amity let out a groan of annoyance as she wobbled herself over to sit next to a crate. She picked up one and read the first line, ‘ _Of light and wind-_ ‘

Nope.

Amity rolled it up and let it drop to her right, leaning back over the crate to grab a few more.

Her siblings followed suit in her actions and soon enough, each of them were in a corner of the room. Emira was standing and looking through the shelves while Edric was placed near the back of the room where a desk sat, and more curses stacked on that. 

Amity bobbed her head between curses and her siblings and frowned, _this was going to take a while…_

-

_And it is._

Amity bitterly thinks as she blinked her dry eyes between the lines of the curse sitting in her lap, she rubbed at them and took a gander at a clock that was hung at the far end of the wall that had no window despite it being right up against the back wall of the house. 

Three...two-nine. They e been in this forsaken room for...seven? _Six? Six and a half hours?_

Amity doesn’t know but her mind feels fried to the point where looking at the elegant writing on the scroll has her scowling before she tosses it to the side in anger. 

Edric yawned from across the room, his own tossing of curses and scrolls greater than either Amity or Emiras piles, “How are curses even made anyways?”

Amity clicked her tongue as she opened another parchment, “Demons make them. They make the curse, all the stuff around it, how it works, the do and don'ts but they can’t cast it.”

Emira looked over at Amity, “How do they create it if they can’t cast it?”

Amity shrugged, leaning over her to rest her head on her hand that sat on her knee, “I don’t know but if King can find a way to break it then…I guess it’ll be worth it.”

The three sat in silence once more before Edric cried out as he tossed a curse across from him back onto the desk, “This is taking forever! I know the Owl Lady’s curse makes her into that owl beast thing but how do you break something even the most powerful witch can break?!

Amity sighed, the thought reaching her tired mind as well but to be honest, she couldn’t really come up with an answer that could benefit the situation, she looked over the stack and inwardly groaned-

“Maybe it has to do with Lilith….” Muttered Emira and ends up gaining the attention of Amity who now bore a frown for the comment. Not liking the nostalgia the comment makes her think of...but she still couldn’t place her finger on it-

“Hey Mittens,” Edrics voice broke through her thoughts, “Do you remember what the parchment would have looked like? Like, from what you remember?”

Amity sighed, leaning back to close her eyes to think back of a scroll that looked a little too neat for something so old. _A long, bright gleam of red attached to parchment while a gold gleamed at one end..._

“It...had a ribbon and a weird seal thing-“ She begins, still thinking of the fight she had seen her mother have with a woman she idolized while insults were huddled like the two were playing catch. _When the parchment was whipped open and...Amity could read the first two lines from the shadows of the stairway where anxiety nipped at her feet_.

She opened her eyes but didn’t look at her siblings, preferring the stare of wood. “-and had the starting lines of ‘Mud and-‘“

“- **_Blood_ **.” Edric and Emiras voices echoed and Amity brought her head up to look at the two but froze when she saw the expressions held on both. Both were dead-staring at her and Amity began to inch away from them but they quickly broke their stare to look at each other before dropping the curses they held and got up to stand.

“We know where it is.” They said in sync.

Amity blinked at them and grabbed her crutch, “Where?” 

“Hidden in our dearest,” Emira let her voice drop in sarcasm. 

Edric growled, “Sweet mother’s study.”

Amity froze as she leaned back on her crutch, her face flushing away any color she had as she felt the weight of the words. 

Mother’s study. 

She gulped as Edric helped her out the room.

_Oh, Titan..._

-

Reluctant as Amity could be, she was still dragged towards the study by her siblings. Their mother's study wasn’t exactly the best place to be at. At all. For anyone or anything. The only mercy being that Amity had only seen it once throughout her lifetime on the Isles. A complete incident that resulted in her hiding from her mother for three weeks. 

The room had no windows and little to none lighting, just like the curse room however, while the curse room smelled like paper and wax…Their mothers' study always held a strong smell of rot and something rancid. 

It was disgusting and often wafted off of the door in waves so Amity made it so she would barely pass the room any time of her life.

From memories she tried to suppress, the room was always filled to the brim with shaped shadows and dripping liquids...that she had later come to learn were mutilated corpses and the things she heard were bodily fluids from said bodies. 

Maids and Fathers abominations were to never go near, in, or even in the hallway which they were walking down right now due to the fact being that it could cause problems if they were to ever see such scenes...and also because Mother was very adamant on her stuff not being shifted or moved.

The only reason why it wasn’t a complete crime that had her mother being sentenced to a lifetime in a prison was because Mother dearest was the head of the healing coven and ‘studying bodies’ were the best way to understand how to heal better. 

It was a shitty excuse but for some reason the other covens bought it along with the Emperors and had allowed her to do her…studies with found and government issued corpses of criminals. 

“And...here we are.” Deadpanned Emira, emotion filtering out of her statement faster than Amity had ever seen. 

Amity opened her mouth for a reply but quickly covered it with her sleeve when the smell of rot reached her nose, “Are we sure that Moms still in the healing coven?”

“Yeah. We’re pretty sure she’s still the head as well…” Edric laughed but quickly covered his own mouth when he inhaled, himself wincing as he did so. 

“Mittens,” Emira sighed. “I’ll grab the parchment. Edric, can you take her away from...” She nudged her head at the door and waited until Edric had helped Amity to the side before she twisted the knob and covered her mouth as the rancid stench drafted out. 

Amity tried to look over her brother's shoulder but she had been forced to look away by Edric, his face solemn as he looked at her. “I wouldn’t, Mittens.”

She looked between her brother and the room as she let out a small sound of agreement. She let her brother lead her away from the room that was laced with gore. 

She wobbled a few feet away before she let herself drag down the wall to sit down as she listened for her two older siblings while they rifled through the contents of the room but every so often there was the small sound of something being squashed or-

_Squelch! Crack!_

Amity covered her mouth to drag back any nausea she had. While she worked with abominations, life-like puppets, dealing with something that was once alive was another...

She let her eyes drift down away to the other end of the hallway, where multiple more portraits hung. Amity narrowed her eyes and reached up to climb her crutch once more, her eyes flickering towards the room behind her.

Would they-

_Squeak!_

Amity frowned, _nope, not going to listen to this any more._

She started to limp towards the portrait side of the hallway and took great notice of the largest one in there, Amity clicked her tongue as she looked it over in spite. 

The green haired witch in all her glory, dressed in the blues of the Healing Coven and lemon yellow gemstones that matched acid snake eyes as she was faced away off to the side of the painting while her snake palisman was coiled around her purple and white staff next to her with the simple name of ‘Odalia’ carved in the frame underneath. 

The main colors of the woman were always the same, cold colors with the small vibrancy of her piercing yellow eyes. They weren’t gold like how their fathers genetics made them out to be, something Amity was very thankful for after their mother had forcefully dyed Amity’s hair…But that's beside the point.

Amity narrowed her eyes at the portrait, the eyes of their mother was a type of yellow that unnerved Amity but she could never, ever place a finger on why it did so. The simple annoyance of not knowing why it was always a bother to her though she never thought to put more thought into it. 

_Not until now, at least…_

Amity turned her body around to look at the other portraits and...froze. She didn’t know these people. 

She brought her body to investigate the painting better, even raising a finger for a light spell to see the paint in better lighting-

“Mittens! We got it!”

Amity turned back to her siblings, “Coming!”

-

They left their home fast and Edric had carried her through the forest back to the Owl House while Emira held the curse and her crutch. 

As soon as the three Blights were let inside by Hooty, Amity let out a screech, “King! We brought the curse!”

There was a shuffle from behind another door before the small demon sprinted out towards the three of them while dragging a book, a book about curses and demonic language realized Amity when she leaned closer.

“Did you read it yet?” He breathed as he finally came to a stop. 

Emira shook her head as she leaned down to give King the parchment while Edric sat Amity down on a couch, “No. We could only read the ‘how to curse’ part but the rest, we don’t even know what language that is.”

King hummed as he opened up the parchment, his voice dropping into a small nibble as he began to read it over. “This curse of mud and blood...envy and jealousy...through loss and love...feathers...owl...fur...cats? What the-“

“What’s wrong?” Amity called, immediately dragging Edric down so she could get a sight over the tiny demon as he walked over to the couch while Emira followed him with a matching frown.

“The curse is…” King tilted his head, “-changing?”

Edric looked over King's head, “How can it change?”

“I don’t know but...only a few lines of the curse are changed though the rest is the same…” 

“Does it say anything about a cure or something?”

“It _should_. I can’t read that part though.” King growled, his claws slowly tracing one of the written scripts on the paper. 

Amity shoved her twins to the side to look at the parchment next to the little demon, “What do you mean?”

King tapped the part of parchment again, a small box where something was written inside. 

_‘The knowledge of the envious to the knowledge of the prosperous is one to never be judged._

_هل تسعى إلى علاج لعنة كهذه، أن تعترف بأخطاءك وتحقق السلام ‘في الحياة_

“It’s not an Isle language.” King sighed before he tilted his head a bit more to the right with a hum, “Though...I think have seen it before but we have to wait for Luz to come home to see.”

“What the…” Muttered Amity, it...it really wasn’t an Isle language. This wasn’t eldritch or kalishy or anything she might’ve known.

“Well,” Began Emira, “We got the basics lets...just make up the rest of the plan until the others get here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you all in two weeks once more! And as always, critique and comments welcomed!
> 
> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)


	4. Chapter 4 - The Regretted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)

Crackle of lightning. Screams. 

Another crackle. Another screech.

Lilith's breath hitched, this was getting nowhere. This was getting repetitive. This is repetitive. She was getting sick of this.

_Crackle!_

She was going to throw up. 

_Screech!_

She hates this. 

_Crackle!_

She feels sick. 

_Screech!_

She-

“Miss Lilith, you're not looking too well.”

Lilith held back a jump when she felt the single eye of Kikimora before giving the small witch a weary glance, “Am-“ A screech bellowed out and she stopped speaking to take a deep breath before sighing. “-I?”

Kikimora narrowed her eye at Lilith, “Yes. You’re looking more tired than usual…I suggest you to take in for the night early.”

Lilith opened her mouth-

_Scree!_

And closed it. Her gaze fidgeted between her sister, Kikimora, Emperor Belos, and the entrance to the dungeons that lead outside. 

As much as she really wanted to just go to her room…

_Crack!_

_Scree!_

She can’t.

“I’m afraid I would like to stay.” Lilith states, she knows her voice wavers at the last word but Kikimora doesn’t make a note of it at the moment.

“Miss Lilith, I insist.” Kikimora sighs, her eye blazing back towards the gruesome scene while Lilith is still looking at the small being. 

The taller of the two takes this moment to watch the apathetic appearance of the witch before turning herself to look at the exit which has light glowing down to the floor from a lantern that hung on the walls. 

_Scree!_

Lilith bit her lips and rose her foot just an inch, _maybe-_

The slam of a staff cuts her off. The metallic slam of Emperor Belos’s technologicaly advanced staff. 

Lilith freezes in her spot and turns back to her Emperor in quietness to just watch the older man grip at his staff. Eda is still in her owl form, but she fights no more, passing out on the ground with such a peaceful look in her face.

She looked towards the Emperor and bows back just a minor inch when noticing the air of wrath that crackles around him in the form of red magic that circled above him like a crown. 

Lilith grips at her dress when he turns to her and his assistant, “Kikimora.”

_Please, don’t let her fear because of what she has always feared. Please. For the love of the Titan don’t not let him say what she doesn’t want to hear. Plea-_

Emperor Belos’s head is slightly tilted towards Eda, “Send for the Odalia. It seems like this curse is one too powerful for just brutal magic to use…”

Lilith can feel her claws digging into the meat of her palm. She doesn’t seek to stop them as they dig harder as she hears a familiar voice from the other end of Kikimora communication spell. 

“Lilith, please do see to their greetings the next morning.” Emperor Belos calls and Lilith gives a bow in return...biting her lips the entire time as she watches Eda breathe.

She turns around slowly, marching to the door of the room in a pace that’s _soft and slow and-_

“...Yes, a night stay is the best option for this...of course, Alador...best of luck to you as well Odalia.”

Lilith gives a glance to the comm that Kikimora began to close before she took off back to the door and left out the hallway. 

_Odalia...and...Alador…_

She gulped as she climbed stairs up the castle and walked in the maze of hallways. Her walking soon became close knitted staggered steps that later had her limping into her room as her heart became heavy and the corners of her eyes catching quick whips of shadows as she dropped into her bed.

_They aren’t there. They aren’t really there._

Lilith let her eyes close, she’ll deal with her paranoia in the morning…

_Yeah, in the morning._

She let her head drip into unconsciousness, _the sludge feeling of being swept into a sense of dreaming as she felt her body be much younger her with glasses much too heavy in her nose...but a glowering aura wrapping around her small body was not one that she felt uncomfortable with as she had carried with ever since-_

_**“Wow, sister against sister, huh…”** _

_**Lilith froze mid-step and clicked her tongue.** _

_**-this day.** _

_**With a stifled groan she turned back to face a green haired wenc- witch and took in the appearance of the other student as she leaned up against the hallway wall. Her purple uniform was practically glowing and it almost made Lilith gag at how bright it was as she questioned how she didn’t notice the girl before.** _

_**“Yeah, what about it?” Lilith snarled, the frown on her face growing as fast as the smug smirk the other had.** _

**_“Oh nothing,” Odalia shrugged. “Nothing much, just wondering how you’re taking it, Lacking Lily.”_ **

**_Lilith frown deepened at the nickname and she turned back to continue her walk-_ **

**_“Since, you know...Edas going to beat you into the ground.”_ **

**_Oh, this- this, now she knows why she was called out by the greenette._ **

**_She bit her lip but froze her drifting to stay in place, her glaring focused on the far wall ahead of her that held her freedom of the witch behind her._ **

**_There was a hum from Odalia,_ ** _**recognizing that Lilith was listening to her still. She, “I don’t like your trash fire of a sis-“** _

_**“Odalia.” Lilith growled out, finally whipping around to glare at all-knowing eyes.** _

_**All-knowing, irratating fucking eyes….** _

**_“-and you don’t want her to win either.” Odalia continued, giving no remorse to the sentence with a curled hand keeping her head up._ **

**_Lilith scowled and marched up to Odalia, “Just because I want to win doesn’t mean I want my sister to fail.”_ **

**_“But given how you’re acting right now, I’d say I was on the nose.”_ **

**_“About what?!” Lilith snapped while grabbing Odalias hood to drag her forward- which was just an inch away and the height difference between the two wasn't that huge._ **

**_There was a smile, a sharp and terror inducing smile that matched the intensity of the glowing, snake-like, yellow eyes._ **

**_Time seems to freeze for just a minute or two with a sight that the Lilith of younger days would never know on that evening that those same yellow eyes that hook her soul and makes her bile sac stutter is the same eyes that would forever haunt her head-_ **

**_“You being the weaker one.” Is hissed out of fanged lips and chills spread from Lilith’s spine to her blood so she jumps to drop Odalias hood to jump a few meters back in sheer terror._ **

**_“Look at you,” Odalia sang, “Grabbing at me when you could easily cast a spell to send me off but no, your hands are off to the side and you puff out your chest in such wrathful pride it’s almost hilari-“_ **

**_“Enough…” Lilith choked out, her heart beating faster than ever because she’s scared of the witch in front of her-_ **

**_“-I mean, a plant spell to ground me into the the floor or every wall-“_ **

**_Scared of the shadow that’s enveloping the hallways of an empty school that's closed and has no one to help her, but she can’t let her defeat her so she choked out a much more stronger reply, “Stop it-“_ **

**_“-surely you could have something to fight back with! How can you ever get into the Emperors Coven when you can’t even defend from-“_ **

**_“SHUT UP!” Lilith yowled, her skin ringing from magic that makes her body glow blue. It was giant but it does its job in making Odalia go quiet in shock with the shadows that dropped around her slipping away like they weren’t there._ **

**_There’s a long stretch of silence and Lilith sides it to scatter her gaze around the hallway to make sure the damn shadows are actually gone and not just slipping to hide. She swallows back her cry to look up to choked and stifled laughter from the witch in front of her, Odalia cackling despite the growing grimace of Lilith herself._ **

_**“A simple curse, really, a single day, little to none bile...complete override of any magic…”** _

_**She stopped her walk to peer over her shoulder, gazing back into glowing yellow eyes, piercing the gaze with her own lightning blue.** _

_**“-if you’re willing to agree?”** _

_Scree!_

Lilith ripped her eyes open, morning came too fast. 

She sat up and rubbed her eyes with the ball of her palms, ignoring that small smear of black that was painted with her hand when she took it away. 

_Time to get on with the day…_

Lilith pushed through her morning routine from her hair to her dress until she was out of her room at the immediate chiming screech of seven in the morning. 

Drifting down the halls, she passed by the cafeteria and glided above the entranceway to the other side of the doorway, _she could skip breakfast…_

She stared at a leaving guardsman that had a tray full of sinabread and apple blood boxes.

Lilith swallowed back saliva, she could deal without breakfast. _She can, she really can-_

“Miss Lilith…” A voice drawled from her left, staggering and tired steps following.

Lilith peered next to her at a gaurds man that she knew as Steve and smiled, “Steve, what are you up to so early?”

She received a shrug and a yawn from him, “Was told to come find ya- Something about escorting?”

_Escorting?_

Lilith frowned, was there anything about- 

_‘-Lacking Lily…’_

_Oh._

Emperor Belos must’ve thought it best to not let her escort Odalias and Alador alone, given the last time…

“Ah, yes.” Lilith bites out with a smile, “You are to assist me with escorting Coven Heads Odalia and Alador Blight through the castle.”

“ _Euck_ \- Those two?” Steve whines, “Odalia gives me the creeps and Alador is so depressing…”

Lilith chucked, “Yes, yes, not the best pick to attend too but at least you won’t do it alone.”

Steve hummed, “True...you getting breakfast?”

“I’ve already ate, however you can go ahead and eat but we have to be at the entrance in twenty minutes.”

“Understood.” 

She watched him as he leapt over into the cafeteria and-

“Steve! I’m not fucking giving you my sinnabread!”

“Share, bitch!”

“No!”

-started to walk away.

-

_Caw!_

_Screech a little bit louder, why don’t you…._

Lilith bites back the remark on the time as she stands next to the outstretched gate with Steve right behind her, biding his time with simple murmurs of a song. 

She clicks her tongue when she grazes over the dock-clock, her watch, and-

_Caw!_

She gazed up to a carriage that was drawn by griffins as their crowing rang in sync with the loud screech of the time.

_Just in time,_ Lilith grimaced, _like always…._

The carriage landed with a thump and started to slowly crawl across the bridge, Lilith and Steve moving to the side to allow the huge transport to slow down to park.

As it did park, Lilith led Steve to move around the large transport to wear a door creaked open and out came black boots as it descended down stairs. 

She waited until amber brown hair had reached its height as he stood straight before smiling, “Welcome to the Emperor's Castle, our mighty Emperor has hopes that your stay will be pleasant.”

“Usually, an old friend would say hello before an entire introduction.” Alador says, a frown on his face but she could see the small twitch in his eyes that usually meant he wanted to smile. 

Lilith let out a short lived laugh, “I wish I could but I’m afraid that your wife-“

“Alador! Alador! Help me!”

“-would not like that.” Lilith finishes, sympathy raising when the other witch simply sighs before turning back to the woman still stuck in the carriage. 

There’s a cough from Steve, his voice barely an octave. “Poor luck...”

Lilith hushed him without hesitation but the choked laugh that lurches out of her lips through a cough enough for Steve not to care for the warning too intensely. 

“Ah- Ow! Alador-“

Lilith gazed back to the two in front of her and hit her lip to conceal a spilling laugh of the sigh of Alador dragging Odalia through the large door of the carriage with ease while the staff of the greenette was held in his other hand.

With a few grumbles of the smaller, she patted out her dress of dust while ripping her staff from her husband, Alador wincing at the velocity but complying to her as she shifted around to look at Lilith.

A grin got stretched out on her acid red lips and Lilith winced just a smidge but put up a smile, “Lily! Darling! Come here, it’s been so long!”

_Don’t call her ‘Lily’- You don’t get to call her that, we weren’t friends and no it hadn’t been that long, you conniving cun- Oh Titan, she’s coming closer-_

“ _Odalia!_ It truly has!” Lilith says, strained but at least she wasn’t grabbed by the woman when a wolf-nailed hand got outstretched but faltered when Steve coughed from behind. 

Odalia sent a look towards Steve but drawn her hand back, “You look well.”

Lilith hums, “Yes...well, it’s best that we get on to the escorting.”

Odalia hums back at her, _yellow acid eyes still-_

Lilith blinked away and started to walk with Steve standing a few inches away from her, they went inside the doors.

All four of them walked past guards and down a hallway after a corner turn before Lilith spoke, “The meal plan of the cafeteria for the entirety of both of your stays are in your room along with several notes of problems that have arisen through the Boiling Isles that you need to watch out for.”

They turned another corner before climbing up stairs on a turn for the next floor of the castle, they needed to climb two more but those stairwells were placed in other corners of the castle...something Lilith dreaded due to her poor composition.

“Alador,” Lilith calls as she gives the people behind her a glance but bites down the chill that snips at her ankle, “-the Emperor has requested you stay for the illusioned abominations, he finds that come are in need of several…enhancements due to several accounts of them being easily taken down.” 

There was a sign from Alador, “I understand.”

“Warden Wrath is also on his way to the castle to aid in the enhancements for the illusioned abominations as they will also be positioned at the confirmatory.” Lilith finishes, her stoicism barely clinging on when Odalia voiced her acknowledgement through her crappy hums and coo’s...all with a demeaning tone.

_Titan, give her strength._

“Hm...so, after we get settled in you’ll show us to Eda after?”

“No, not quite. I have more matters to attend to, however, one of the guardsmen will bring you to the dungeon in an hour or so.”

“Oh.” Odalia sighs. “Well, since Eda is _your_ sister…”

Lilith bit her lip and tugged the fabric of her dress tight in one grasp, feeling Steve stutter a beat behind her but didn’t say anything. 

“I would’ve thought _you’d_ be the one showing us-“

“ _Odalia_.” Alador hissed, his voice bitter in a bite as a ruffle of clothing was heard and heels steeled in their place. “ _Don’t. Even.”_

Lilith stopped her walking to look back at the couple as Odalia gave Alador a sharp glance before whipping her head away to peer in one of the rooms, “Fine.”

“Forgive us, or well…” Alador gave a stubborn glare at Odalia before softening his gaze back at Lilith, “Please forgive Odalia for her attitude.”

She gave them both a forced and curt smile, “It’s alright. Though we must get on our way, let’s get you two to your room.” Lilith turned on her heel and began to walk through the doors, the couple following her.

They got a few feet farther before Odalia spoke, her voice wavering, “No plural?”

“Ah…” Steve echoed and both him and Lilith stopped to look back at Odalia and Alador, “N-No?”

Lilith frowned and spared a glance at her favorite guardsman to see him shrinking as he fidgeted away from Odalia, inching oh-so close to Lilith in fear.

“The Emperor has thought it best for you two to have your room, like past visits. After all, you two are... _married_.”

_Married. Titan, that tasted like acid in her mouth but it seemed like the sound of the word wasn’t only giving her great distaste…_

Odalia and Alador gave each other a look, a desperate one from Odalia being met with one filled with wrathful vigor from Alador. 

Lilith narrowed her eyes, she wanted to laugh but…

She flicked her eyes between Alador, Steve, and Odalia, then frowned.

The two were going to share a room, best not strain the relationship as bad as it is now. 

Lilith turned back around and waved Steve’s attention, “You can leave if it’s getting too much.”

Steve leaned back a bit, “A-Ah...I-“

“Alador-“

They both turn to watch the couple once more and to say the least, Odalia was clipping in Aladors heels with her cry as the stoic man marches on, “Lilith, let’s continue on.”

She spared her old friend a glance and nodded before she whispered, “Steve, have someone prep another room just in case.”

The guardsman nods and leaves out of a corner turn while Lilith smiles back at Alador and Odalia before turning back around to lead the couple down the halls once more. 

-  


“Truly, there is no way to reverse it?”

“Not in any way I can, my lord.”

“Hm…”

Lilith bit her lip and leaned her head to her shoulder with a glare focused entirely on the gravel and cement mix of the dungeon grounds in a bitter stewing. 

Odalia caught her gaze as Emperor Belos turned around to reseal Eda and send her back into her cage- _prison. Eda wasn’t- she...she wasn’t gone, she- she’s still-_

A cough had her focusing back on Odalia as the witch started to steer her way out the room by leaning most of her weight on her staff like a crutch. 

_Yellow, slit eyes-_

Odalias lips turned up as she stalked past Lilith and out the door. 

“Odalia, your room is prepped.” Lilith sighed, her voice going softly in contained anger.

“Wha-“ The greenette echoed but faltered into a sour face as Steve appeared at the exit of the dungeon, “Oh.” 

“I-I’ll be showing you-“ Steve’s squealing introduction wasn’t finished as Odalia shoved past him.

Steve looked hesitant to follow, looking between the witch and Lilith before he bowed with a whisper,“I’m sorry, Miss Lilith…”

Lilith let out a choked hum as he stuttered to follow Odalia up the stairs. She let her head drag over to lean against her chest and in her anguish, listened to the discussion of both Kikimora and her emperor. 

“-it’s best to-“

“-no, we simply cannot do that-“

“-call-“

“- _petrifying_ , it must be-“

Lilith let her glaze honey over the two other beings in front of her, her face feeling cold as it drained of blood and bile. 

_Petrification?_

She took in a gargled breath, she’s heard enough. 

Lilith whipped up the stairs from the dungeon and numbly made her way into an outer hallway, holding her breath the entire time until she was at the top floor and-

_‘Then why were you so easy to curse!?’_

She bit her lip and turned to the large window to lean on the frame as she cradled her head in her arms. She wasn’t going to cry. She wasn’t going to cry. She wasn’t going to-

**_BOOM!_ **

Lilith stumbled forward into a wall, the copious guards making their rounds around her stumbling as well before all of them freezing. Instantaneous, they all whipped their heads at the smoke that bellowed around the entrance way before running. 

Lilith spun her staff in her hands and stepped a foot to run with them but-

_Scree!_

She turned her head towards the hallway that she came from, of the echoing screeches that started to stray into her ears-

_‘I’m so sorry.’ A voice drawled with barely concealed acting._

Lilith spun to look between the hallway and the window before sealing her decision with a blink of tears from of her eyes and a spin on her heel.

_If you don’t want to heal her, Odalia, she’ll find one who will._

“Eda, I’m coming.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, next chapter is gonna be fun, see you there! ;)
> 
> [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/PrincessToQuee1) \- [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.qa/PrincessToQueen)


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